United passenger launches legal action over forceful removal

Evelina Iaccino |22 Aprile 2017, 12:41

United passenger launches legal action over forceful removal

Dao filed an emergency "bill of discovery" against United and the city of Chicago to keep all video, cockpit recordings and other reports from the flight, as well as the personnel files of the aviation department officers who pulled Dao off the plane.

Until United CEO Oscar Munoz fixes vital aspects of United's corporate culture, expect to see more negative viral videos and tweet storms about the airline.

"My initial words fell short of truly expressing what we were feeling and that's something I've learned from - the expression of apology", he said. It took four official statements however before Mr Muñoz apologised for the mistreatment. In a subsequent letter to employees, the CEO called the customer "disruptive" and "belligerent".

"It was a system failure". But for many, it is a case of too little, too late for many, including members of U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, who have called for an official hearing with respect to the incident.

A United spokesperson told CNN affiliate WBBM, "All customers on flight 3411 from Sunday, April 9 are receiving compensation for the cost of their tickets". The public seems to agree that even if the David Dao implicated in these drug and sex crimes is the same David Dao that was assaulted by United Airlines staff, this is still no reason to withdraw sympathy from this man who was so brutally mistreated. The agent and United officials then made a decision to choose four random people and demand they get off.

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An Aviation Department spokeswoman did not respond to questions about the duties of the aviation police force, but Zalewski said the agency's commissioner will be asked that on Thursday. Flight attendants seek volunteers to give up their seats to accommodate United employees who planned on flying on to Louisville. A spokesperson for the Chicago Department of Aviation told Yahoo News the incident "was not in accordance with our standard operating procedure, and the actions of the aviation security officer are obviously not condoned by the department".

Dao only started to get mildly upset when the second officer came on the plane after he continued to refuse to leave. The media reported Dr. Dao refused to leave, saying he had patients he needed to attend to in Louisville.

Screaming can be heard on the videos, but nowhere is Dao seen attacking the officers. "But with all the bad press United is getting from this, do I think they would pursue anything? No".

Federal rules allow airlines to sell more tickets than they have seats, and airlines do it routinely because they assume some passengers won't show up. Rarely has an airline - or any company - faced the kind of global condemnation that has pounded United over the last several days.

The footage doesn't show Dao being forcibly removed from the flight, which surfaced on social media on Monday and has caused a storm of negative publicity for United Airlines since. While his legal team has yet to file a case, it has already petitioned to demand that all evidence in the case be preserved by the airline and airport security.

The passenger was identified as physician David Dao, 69, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, who was convicted more than a decade ago of felony charges involving his prescribing of drugs and spent years trying to regain his medical license. This has happened after he has boarded the plane and taken his first class seat.